Improvement in piston water-meters



3 Sheets-Sheet 1. B. D. GILBERT. oer-Meter.

'A. C. BLOUN'T & Piston Wa Patented Jan. 21,1879.

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' 3 Sheets -Sheet 2.

A; O. 'BLOUNT & E. D. GILBERT. Plston Water-Meter N.PETERS. PMOIQUTRQGRAPHE V 3 Sheets-Sheet, A,.-U. BL-OUNT 8L. E. D. GILBERT;

Piston Water-Meter. I

' -N o.211,4 93. Patented Jan. 21, 18-79.

- he Qua Mm UNITED STATns PATENT DFFIGE.

ALEXANDER C. BLOUNT, OF PENSACOLA, FLORIDA, AND EDMUND D. GILBERT, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

IMPROVEMENT IN PISTON WATER-METERS.

V Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 21 1,493, dated January 21, 1879; application filed November 1, 1878.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, ALEXANDER C. BLoUNT and EDMUND D. GILBERT, the former of Pensacola, in the State of Florida, and the latter of Philadelphia, in the State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in VVater-Meters; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof, in which- Figure lis a vertical central section through the cylinders and an elevation of the valvechamber, the cover of the valve-chamber bein g removed. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section of the piston-rod in the line as w of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a rear elevation of the meter-cylinders and a section of the rear water-chambers, which connect with the valve-chamber and pipes of the cylinders. Fig. 4 is a diagram of the pawl-actuating mechanism of the register. Fig. 5 is a horizontal section through the valve-chamber and a plan view of the parts below the line of section and Fig. 6 is a vertical transverse section in the line 3 y' of Fig. 3, showing the register in elevation.

The nature of our invention consists in certain constructions, combinations, and arrangements of parts in a double-cylinder watermeter, which is provided with two slide-valves, connected with a registering mechanism, whereby, first, an alternate motion of the pistons is produced, and an uninterrupted flow of water from the meter is effected; second, the friction of the pistons is prevented from movin g the valves before the pistons have made their full strokes, and a full stroke of the valves is secured; third, the length of the stroke of the piston is adjusted, and the amount of water measured and controlled; and, fourth, the registering mechanism is operated by the motion of thevalves and pistons without any undue strain upon the connections between the valves and said mechanism.

In the accompanying drawings, Arepresents the shell of a double cylinder, having pistons B B, which slide on central tubes, C. The bottom D of the shell A is provided with two central pins, d, upon which the tubes C are fitted. The upper parts of the tubes C extend of the same cylinder.

through the top D of the shell A, and are kept steady between top and bottom by means of collars c.

The tubes C are provided with inner rods, E, and with slots 0 The rods E are fitted into the tubes C, and are packed at the upper end of said tubes by means of stuffing-boxes c of ordinary construction.

Above and below the pistons B B collars F are provided, which fit loosely upon the tubes C, and are fastened to the rods E by means of set-screws f, which latter pass through the slots a of the tubes.

The top D is provided with a valve-chant ber, G, having an outlet-pipe, g two valvefaces, g, and two slide-valves, g. The slidevalves g have forked lugs 9 through which the rods E extend, and to which they are fastened by means of an upper nut, e, and alower one, 0.

The valve-faces g are provided with vertical guide-strips 9 between which the valves are inserted, so as to form a doveta1l-joint connection, g, which prevents them. from being lifted from their valve-seats. (See Fig. 5.)

The valve-faces 9 have supply-ports h h h? h and exhaust-ports h 71?, similar to those of a steam-engine, and each such port is connected ,with achamber behind the valve-face, as seen at t i t t i t in Fig. 3. These chambers are formed by partitions h 71. h 71 within two closed chests, H H, and each chamber is provided with a communicating-pipe in the following manner, reference being made to the meter as shown in position in Fig. 1 Chamber 6 is connected, through pipe I, with the upper space, (F, of the left-hand cylinder. Chamber 1" is connected by a pipe, 1 with lower space, (1 of the same cylinder. Chamber i is connected by a pipe, 1 with the lower space, a, of the right-hand cylinder. Chamber t is connected by a pipe, I with the upper space, a,

The chamber 6* is connected by a pipe, I, to an exhaust-pi1')e,1 and the chamber i is connected to the same exhaust-pipe by a pipe, I. This exhaust-pipe I is connected with a hydrant or water-cock of a dwelling.

The lugs g are provided with platesjj, which are loosely clasped by the curved ends of two forked levers, J J, the shafts j j of which pass through suitable bearings K K in the back of the valve-ch amber, an d are packed by stuffingboxes k k, as seen in Fig.5. In Fig. 5 the line of section is lowered at one of these shafts, and a separate horizontal section along the center line of the shaft j illustrates the construction of the said bearings and stuffing-boxes.

The shafts 7' j are provided with levers L L outside the valve-chamber and behind a registering apparatus, M, which levers are connected by links I l with two pawl-levers, L L swinging on suitable pins 1 Z and having spring-pawls Z 1 whereby the first countingwheel, m, of the register is operated.

The arrangement of the levers L L and L L is such that the levers L L when operated by the valves, are caused to move back and forward over their dead-centers, and thus every movement of the valves is separately registered by the action of their respective pawls. The wheel m is made to count one hundred strokes of the pistons B B, and is provided with a pin,m', wh erebyit operates a pawl-lever,

N, with a spring-pawl, n, which latter operates a second counting-wheel, m of the register, which wheel counts one hundred revolutions of the wheel m. The said wheels are each connected with a corresponding dial-finger in front of a doubly-graduated dial attached to the front plate of the register, and by this means 100x100 piston-strokes may be registered; and byaddin g anothercountin g-wheel and correspondingly operating pawl and dial-finger, 100 100 100, or one million, piston-strokes may be registered, and so on.

WVhen the hydrant with which the exhaustpipe I is connected is opened, the water in the main or service pipe which is connected with the inlet enters the valve-chamber G and passes through the open port h, the chamber i and pipe 1 into the space a of the right-hand cylinder, and moves the piston B Near the termination of its upward stroke the piston B comes in contact with the collar F and pushes it upward, thereby moving the rod E and the thereto-attached valve g up until the set-screws f arrive at the end of the slotc. The port It is now open, and

the water passes from the valve-chamber through it and through the chamber 2' and pipe l into the space a of the left-hand cylinder, causing the piston B to rise, while the piston B remains stationary. The piston B in terminating its stroke moves the collar F,

' rod E, and thereto-attached valve g up, and

thus exposes the port 71.". The water now passes through the said port, the chamber i and pipe 1 into the space a of the right-hand cylinder, and causes the piston B to descend, while the piston B remains stationary. The

' water below the piston B is, by the descendin g piston, expelled from the space a and caused to pass through the pipe I, chamber 2' port k valve 9 and port If into the chamber 6 and from thence through the pipes I I into the hydrant.

The piston B, in finishing its downstroke, pushes the lower collar, F, the rod E, and the therewith-connected valve 9 down, and thus the port It becomes exposed. The water in the valve-chamber now passes through the port h, chamber 2', and pipe I into the space a of the left-hand cylinder and forces the piston B down, while the piston B remains stationary. The water below the piston B is thereby caused to pass through the pipe I, chamber 0, port 71, valve 9, and port 71/ into the chamber *6, and from thence through the pipes I I to the hydrant.

Each stroke of the valves is recorded, as described, by the register. I

The motion of the valves is such that when one begins to cut off its supply the other hegins to open its supply, so that the steady flow of water through the hydrant is not interrupted by means of a partly-closed port.

The stroke of the pistons may be adjusted longer or shorter by changing the position of the collars F upon the rods E, and thus the quantity of water to be delivered by eachpiston-stroke may be controlled perfectly.

The valves being so arranged that each one operates the piston to which the other is attached, a full stroke is always secured for the valves, as well as a continuous steady operation of the-meter.

The tubes 0 serve as centrcl guides for the pistons and protect the rods E against premature operation, which would be caused by the friction of a piston if made to slide upon the tubes E.

Having described our invention, what we claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States, is V -1. The two cylinders provided with the chambers G H H and pipes I I I I I 1 applied as described, in combination with two valves, g 9 and two pistons, B B, the valves and pistons being connected together by valverods E E, which 7 carry abutments F, upon which the pistons operate directly for opening and closing the valves, substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. In a water-meter, the combination of a piston with a stationary guide-tube, O, having slots 0, and a valve-rod, E, having collars F and set-screws f, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

3. The combination of the two cylinders, the chambers Gr H H, pipes I I l I I 1 valves g, rods E E, tubes 0 G, and pistons B B, substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. The combination of the register M with the valves g by means of the forked levers J J, plates j 7' and shafts j j substantially as and for the purpose set forth,

ALEXANDER O. BLOUNT. EDMUND D. GILBERT.

In presence of- HENRY O. HAWKINS, W. M. PAOKER. 

